Shakespearean Food & Drink with Sam Bilton

My guest on The British Food History Podcast today food historian and friend of the show Sam Bilton, podcaster and author of Much Ado About Cooking Delicious Shakespearean Feasts for Every Occasion, published by Headline and commissioned by Shakespeare’s Globe. It was, of course, a great opportunity to talk about the food of Shakespearean England as well as the food and drink references in Shakespeare’s plays, and what they meant to those watching the plays at the time they were first performed.We talked about lots of cookery manuscripts, the importance of keeping historical recipes relevant, capons, Early Modern bread and greedy Falstaff’s sack, amongst many other things.Those listening to the secret podcast can hear about horrible, sweet spinach tarts, Early Modern cakes, possets and more!Much Ado About Cooking by Sam BiltonSam’s websiteFollow Sam on BlueSky, Insta and Threads @mrssbiltonComfortably HungryAis for Apple: An Encyclopaedia of Food & DrinkRemember: Fruit Pig are sponsoring the 9th season of the podcast. Visit their website www.fruitpig.co.uk to learn more about them, their journey, to find your local stockist and access their online shop.If you can, support the podcast and blogs by becoming a £3 monthly subscriber, and unlock lots of premium content, including bonus blog posts and recipes, access to the easter eggs and the secret podcast, or treat me to a one-off virtual pint or coffee: click here.This episode was mixed and engineered by Thomas Ntinas of the Delicious Legacy podcast.Things mentioned in today’s episodeThe Globe TheatreWho is Falstaff?Books discussed or mentioned and further readingFirst Catch Your Gingerbread by Sam BiltonKnead to Know: A History of Baking by Neil ButteryA Dark History of Sugar by Neil ButteryEnglish Bread & Yeast Cookery by Elizabeth DavidThe Good Housewife’s Jewel by Thomas DawsonThe English Housewife by Gervase MarkhamThe Scot’s Kitchen by F. Marion McNeillDelightes for ladies by Sir High PlattElinor Fettiplace's Receipt Book by Hilary SpurlingPrevious pertinent blog postsBoiled Capon with Sugar PeasTudor Salmon en CrouteManchets and Payndemayn Previous pertinent podcast episodesA Rare Early Modern Cheese Manuscript with Alex BamjiA Tudor Christmas with Brigitte WebsterTudor Cooking & Cuisine with Brigitte Webster Neil’s blogs and YouTube channel:‘British Food: a History’ The British Food History Channel‘Neil Cooks Grigson’ Neil’s books:Before Mrs Beeton: Elizabeth Raffald, England’s Most Influential HousekeeperA Dark History of Sugar Knead to Know: a History of BakingThe Philosophy of PuddingsDon’t forget, there will be postbag episodes in the future, so if you have any questions or queries about today’s episode, or indeed any episode, or have a question about the history of British food please email me at [e-mail], or on twitter and BlueSky @neilbuttery, or Instagram and Threads dr_neil_buttery. My DMs are open.You can also join the British Food: a History Facebook discussion page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/britishfoodhistoryMentioned in this episode:The British Food History podcast is currently sponored by Netherton FoundrySeason 10 of The British Food History Podcast is sponsored by Netherton Foundry, producers of top-quality, British-made cookery equipment. Nestled in rural South Shropshire, Netherton Foundry is a family-run business, headed by husband and wife team Neil and Sue Currie, which takes inspiration from the local iron masters of the 18th and 19th centuries to craft traditional cookware from iron, oak and copper using non-toxic materials. Their cookware is built to last, whether it be their famous prospector pans (of which I am a proud owner), crumpet rings or their impressive range of outdoor cookware. Netherton Foundry ships to several countries outside of the UK, including the USA and Canada. Visit netherton-foundry.co.uk to find out more about their wonderful products – approved not just by me but by folk such as Tom Parker-Bowles, Diana Henry and Nigella Lawson. This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp